Most of Olympia is in Thurston County, where a full-time job needs to pay at least $48.80 an hour before taxes to take home four times the typical studio rent.
Across the 9 ZIP codes in Olympia with HUD rent figures, studio rents run from $1,450 to $1,860 a month. At the middle rent, $1,590, a full-time job would need to pay $50.97 an hour before taxes.
What the standard would be at each ZIP code's own studio rent. The calculator and the official standard use the county figure.
| ZIP | County | Studio rent | Pay needed |
|---|---|---|---|
| 98501 | Thurston County | $1,570/mo | $50.25/hr |
| 98502 | Thurston County | $1,530/mo | $48.80/hr |
| 98505 | Thurston County | $1,530/mo | $48.80/hr |
| 98506 | Thurston County | $1,450/mo | $45.90/hr |
| 98507 | Thurston County | $1,590/mo | $50.97/hr |
| 98508 | Thurston County | $1,590/mo | $50.97/hr |
| 98512 | Thurston County | $1,610/mo | $51.70/hr |
| 98513 | Thurston County | $1,790/mo | $58.22/hr |
| 98516 | Thurston County | $1,860/mo | $60.76/hr |
Under the Four Times Rent standard, a full-time job in Olympia needs to pay at least $48.80 an hour before taxes, about $101,496 a year. That is the figure for Thurston County, where the typical studio rent is $1,530 a month.
Yes. Across the 9 ZIP codes in Olympia with HUD rent figures, studio rents run from $1,450 to $1,860 a month. At the middle rent of $1,590, the pay needed would be $50.97 an hour.
The minimum wage in Thurston County is $17.13 an hour. The Four Times Rent standard there is 2.8 times that.
The Four Times Rent standard: a month of full-time work (160 hours) should take home at least four times the typical rent on a studio apartment in the county where the work is done. Rents: HUD FY2027 Fair Market Rents. Taxes: 2026 federal and state income taxes plus Social Security and Medicare, for a single filer. Why four times rent? · Method and data downloads